BJP in damage control, backs TS Govt on Sania

• Foolish talk, says Keshav Rao; VH disagrees
• Nonsense says Renuka, calls Sania daughter of India

New Delhi: The BJP central leadership stepped into damage-control mode after Telangana BJP leader K Lakshman’s remarks against Tennis icon Sania Mirza, who was recently appointed Telangana Brand Ambassador by the Telangana Government. In a strong rebuff to the talk that Sania is the daughter-in-law of Pakistan, former BJP president Murli Manohar Joshi remarked, “If such things somebody says, then I think it only reflects his culture.”

Union Information & Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar declared, “I have no objection to Sania Mirza being appointed Brand Ambassador of Telangana. She is the pride of India. She has an international standing of her own. We have no problem. Actually, she is the Pride of India and Brand Ambassador of India.”

TRS MP K Kavita said there was nothing controversial in the decision. It is the decision of the Telangana Government and it should be respected. “I don’t think it is a serious issue. There are serious issues, which must be taken more seriously,” she said. Debunking the charge that Sania Mirza did nothing for Telangana, Kavita said there were several such instances and she cited the example of Amitabh Bachchan, who was made Gujarat Brand Ambassador, despite his not having credible links with Gujarat.

Brand Ambassadors were chosen on the yardstick of their popularity, she pointed out. Asserting that Sania is an Indian citizen, she advised the BJP to be more concerned about development in the State.

Another TRS MP K Keshav Rao dismissed it as foolish talk. “We don’t care what anyone else says, she is an international achiever,” Keshav Rao said. PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti lambasted the BJP for using terms like “daughter-in-law of Pakistan” for Sania Mirza. “Is this the language they use for their own daughters,” she asked. Striking a discordant note, senior Congress leader V Hanumanth Rao insisted that Sania had not worked in Telangana before. “ The Issue is not about her being married to a Pakistani player, it is because she has not worked for Telangana,” he said.

BSP leader Mayawati also backed the Telangana Government decision. Mayawati said, “We should welcome Telangana Government’s decision of choosing Sania Mirza as the State Brand Ambassador. It is not right to bring politics into everything. This will create communal disharmony.” Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury fumed, saying it is all nonsense and asserted that Sania is the daughter of India. She is a sportsperson, who is a young icon and has brought glory to the nation. She went on to say that when a man becomes a Brand Ambassador, it is fine, but when a woman becomes a Brand Ambassador, people raise such issues. “I am very happy she has become Telangana Brand Ambassador,” said Renuka Chowdhury.

Laxman clarifies

Meanwhile, Telangana BJP leader K Laxman, who has criticised the TRS government's decision to appoint tennis star Sania Mirza as brand ambassador of the newly carved-out state and termed her as "daughter-in-law of Pakistan,” said he had been misunderstood. He told ANI that he had no problem with Sania marrying anybody. “…the government has also been saying even for the Telangana poor students, to get back their fee reimbursement the CM wants pre 1956 documents as an evidence to be treated as a local/native. But when it comes to the question of declaring Sania Mirza as brand ambassador they did not take her nativity into consideration. I was just narrating about her birth place and parents shifting to Hyderabad. I don't have any objection in her getting married to anybody. It's her personal life,” he clarified.